BODILY TEMPERATURE COMPATIBLE WITH LIFE. 823 



when artificial warmth was applied. Similar results were obtained in 

 the case of recently hatched and old birds. 



Hibernating mammals have been observed during winter with 

 temperatures as low as 2, and during summer they may be cooled by 

 artificial means to 1 0> 2 ; in these cases the animals are able to again raise 

 their temperature without any external aid (Walther, Horvath, and 

 others). 



The eggs of silk-worms and of other insects may be exposed for a 

 long time to temperatures 20 to 30 below zero, and yet will develop 

 into larvse when removed to warm surroundings. 1 The Arctic ex- 

 plorer Boss exposed caterpillars to a temperature of -42, and found 

 that they recovered when slowly thawed. Colasanti 2 observed that 

 hens' eggs could be exposed for two hours to a temperature of -4, and 

 for half an hour to a temperature of -7 to -10, and yet developed 

 normally when placed in an incubator. 



As already pointed ont on p. 817, in the lower vertebrates the tem- 

 perature of the body may sink to zero and yet recovery take place. 

 Hunter 3 placed an eel in a freezing mixture, until the temperature of 

 its stomach fell to -0'6, when the animal appeared to be dead, but 

 by the next day it had recovered ; a similar result was observed in a 

 frog. Frozen leeches, however, were dead when thawed. 



As regards the limit of high temperatures compatible with human 

 life, there are numerous records of cases of hyperpyrexia. The highest 

 observed by Wunderlich 4 was 44 0> 75 (112*55 F.) in a case of tetanus; 

 one hour after death the temperature was 45'37. Currie 5 found a 

 temperature of 44 45, Woodman 6 one of 461 in fatal cases of scarlet 

 fever ; Ba'umler 7 records a case of sunstroke in a healthy man, the 

 temperature in the axilla was 42 '9, there was deep coma, and death 

 took place in eight hours ; in a similar case observed by Casey 8 the 

 temperature in the axilla was 43*1, and death occurred within three 

 hours. Levick 9 gives cases of sunstroke in which the temperature was 

 42 0> 8, and the patients recovered. Fatal cases with temperatures 43, 

 42 0< 5, and 44 are recorded by Simon, 10 two cases of tetanus with 

 temperatures 44 4 and 41 -6 before death by Lehmann, 11 and others 

 with 43-4, 43-6, 42'75, 434, 434, 44-3, and 43 by Quincke. 12 



On the other hand, Donkin l3 gives cases of temperatures as high as 

 44 -2, 45, and 44'5 ; in which recovery took place ; the high temperature, 

 however, appears to have persisted for a very short time. In two cases 

 of rheumatic hyperpyrexia recorded by Arkle 14 the temperature was 

 43'55 (1104 F.), but the patients recovered. 



1 Reaumur, "Me'm. sur les insectes," tomes ii. and v. ; Spallanzani, "Opusc. de phys. 

 anim.," tome i. pp. 82-85; Bonafous, " Biblioth. univ., Geneve, 1838, tome xvii. p. 200; 

 Ross, ibid., 1836, tome iii. p. 423; Pictet, Arch. d. sc. phys. ct nat., Geneve, 1893 (3), 

 tome xxx. p. 293. 



2 Arch.f. Anat,., Physiol. u. ivissensch. Med., 1875, S. 477. 



3 "Works," Palmer's edition, London, 1837, vol. iv. p. 131 et seq. 



4 " Medical Thermometry," p. 204. 5 "Medical Reports, etc." 



6 Med. Mirror, London, 1865, p. 77. 



7 Med. Times and Gaz., London, 1868, vol. ii. p. 118. 



8 Ibid., 1866, vol. ii. p. 26. 



9 Penn. Hosp. Hep., Philadelphia, 1868, vol. i. p. 369. 



10 Charite-Ann., Berlin, 1865, Bd. xiii. Heft 2, S. 1. 



11 Schmidt's Jahrb., Leipzig, 1868, Bd. cxxxix. S. 241. 



12 Berl. klin. Wchnsehr., 1869, S. 301. 



13 Brit. Med. Jonrn., London, 1879, vol. ii. p. 983. 



14 Trans. Clin. Soc. London, 1888, vol. xxi. p. 187, 



